The Communication of Community Collaboration: When Rhetorical Visions Collide

Recently, community coalitions have grown in size, scope, and popularity in response to increasing demands for community-based involvement. Despite this trend, little is known about the ubiquitous role communication plays in the creation of community coalition missions, goals, and enactment practices. In addition, few studies have focused on the symbolic discourse of vital, active community groups. This study examines how coalition members have symbolically converged around a shared vision, which has unintentionally affected group sustenance. Fantasy theme analysis identifies two distinct visions in competition with one another, highlighting possible group dysfunction and decline. This communicative analysis of the group's symbolic life, coupled with a practical look into group effectiveness, bridges the gap between functionalist and interpretive approaches to studying organizational groups.     

Financing public education in the southern states

A study of curriculum goals set forth in school-leaving examinations in mathematics and biology from Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, and Tunisia benchmarked against the French baccalaureat examinations. This investigation uncovers and contrasts the goals of secondary education as they are put forward in the tests that are used in the certification of completion of secondary studies in these countries. The work takes advantage of a metric developed for the Third International Mathematics and Science Study efforts to measure educational goals for school mathematics and science. Tests from the sample of Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries are found to emphasize traditional content and the ability to recall and apply routine procedures and algorithms. These goals are contrasted with French school-leaving examinations and the implications of these findings for understanding and assessing curriculum policy in MENA, in a context of educational reform and the challenges of economic competiveness are considered.     

Validating the Conceptions of Assessment-III Scale in Canadian Preservice Teachers

Building on Snow's (1989) idea of 2 pathways to achievement outcomes, a performance and a commitment pathway, this study examined how cognitive and motivational factors associated with each of these pathways, respectively, contributed to the prediction of achievement outcomes in science. The sample consisted of 491 10th- and 11th-grade high school students. Results of hierarchical regression analyses showed that (a) students' cognitive abilities were the strongest predictors of their performance in science as measured by standardized test scores; (b) motivational processes enhanced the predictive validity for science test scores and grades beyond the variance accounted for by ability; and (c) motivational processes were the strongest predictors of students' commitment to science in the form of situational engagement and anticipated choices of science-related college majors and careers. These results are consistent with Snow's (1989) conjecture that both performance and commitment pathway-related factors are necessary for understanding the full range of person-level inputs to achievement outcomes.     

Remedial Testing and Placement in Community Colleges

Almost half of students who enter college require some sort of remedial coursework. Further, states are increasingly moving the responsibility of postsecondary remediation away from four-year campuses to two-year institutions. Scholars and policymakers have grappled with best practice for successfully filling in academic gaps and moving students forward, and there is variation both within and between states as to the ways in which remediation is defined, determined, and administered (Perin, 2006 Perin , D. ( 2006 ). Can community colleges protect both access and standards? The problem of remediation . Teachers College Record 108 ( 3 ), 339 – 373 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Using a regression discontinuity design, this study seeks to answer the following question on one community college campus: How does placement into remedial services affect student outcomes, in particular, successful completion of an introductory college-level English course? Although this study focuses on a single community college system, the findings have bearing on a wider sector as the developmental placement practices of Harper Community College District are not unlike those implemented by two- and four-year campuses across the country.     

Intraseason changes in the body composition of collegiate female gymnasts

Body composition measures were collected pre‐, mid‐ and post‐season on a team of eight national‐calibre collegiate women gymnasts to examine intraseason changes. Also analysed were interseason changes using pre‐ and post‐season data on five of the eight subjects during the current and previous year, according to a 2 x 2 (years x tests) analysis of variance repeated‐measures design. Skinfold, circumference and diameter measures were collected with percentage body fat, lean body mass and body density determined by regression equations developed specifically for collegiate female gymnasts.

Intraseason body weight decreased significantly from pre‐ to mid‐season (x = 55.0 and 53.6 kg respectively); but the difference between mid‐ and post‐season (53.9 kg) values was not significant (P>0.05). The majority of the 1.4 kg weight loss occurred during intense pre‐season conditioning and not during the actual season. Percentage body fat, on the other hand, decreased significantly from pre‐to mid‐season and mid‐ to post‐season (x = 21.4%, 17.4% and 13.45% respectively; P<0.0005). Body density increased significantly from pre‐ to mid‐season and mid‐ to post‐season (x = 1.0476, 1.0584 and 1.0681 respectively; P<0.0005). Of the circumference and skinfold values used in calculating percentage body fat and body density, only the skinfold values displayed significant decreases throughout the season.

Interseason analyses revealed no significant changes in any of the dependent measures between seasons, despite consistent trends. There were no significant years x tests interactions and all intraseason changes for two seasons (n = 5) were the same as those found in more detailed analysis of a single season (n = 8) except in the case of weight loss, which was marginally significant (P < 0.046) in the single‐season and not in the dual‐season analysis (P>0.05).

Body composition of these gymnasts changed in many ways within competitive seasons. The most pronounced changes observed were decreases in subcutaneous fat and increases in body density. This study reinforces the need for administrators, coaches and athletes to be concerned with percentage body fat and skinfold measures rather than weight alone when determining if a person is ‘fat’.     

POPULARITY IN A FREEFALL: MEASURING A SPIRAL OF SILENCE AT THE END OF THE BUSH PRESIDENCY

This study measures a spiral of silence in the context of actualopinion change during President George Bush's popularity declinein one of his political strongholds. Willingness of voters topublicly express their opinions about Bush were analyzed overthree pre-election surveys (N = 1,800) sponsored by a prominentlocal newspaper in Orange County, California. Respondents wereasked whether or not they would be willing to be reinterviewedby a reporter and have their names and views published in thepaper. The hypothesis that Bush supporters would be less willingthan others to agree to be reinterviewed during the period inwhich the president's ratings were dropping sharply is supported.This trend was most in evidence at the beginning of the presidentialcampaign, when Bush's ratings were in the steepest decline.These findings indicate the importance of actual opinion shiftsin spiral of silence research, and suggest several issues forfuture research on opinion change.     

Influence of social goal orientations and peers on unsportsmanlike play

The present study was designed to examine the influence of personal (i.e., social goal orientations or definitions of success that include interpersonal relationships) and situational (i.e., peer influence) factors on decisions surrounding unsportsmanlike play. Middle school students (ages 11-15 years) completed a measure to assess task, ego, and social goal orientations. Participants also read scenarios about unsportsmanlike actions and responded to questions tapping the intention to perform those actions. A series of hierarchical regression analyses revealed that in certain peer contexts, social goal orientations influenced unsportsmanlike play responses above and beyond the contribution of task and ego goal orientations. Results varied/for boys and girls and provide support far including social goal orientations in achievement motivation research in the physical domain.     

What teachers come to know through school portfolio development

This article distills what teachers at six diverse, urban schools came to know as a consequence of engaging in school portfolio development from a teacher knowledge perspective. Grounded in a narrative method and form, the work highlights the asking of hard questions, the concept of powerful learning, the idea of high quality professional development, the layered nature of knowledge, the aesthetic qualities of knowing and the limitations of what reflective school portfolios can and cannot do.